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mission is to do battle with the rebel forces and destroy them. ‘An honorable withdrawal,’ you said. But where is the honor in failing to complete the mission with which His Imperial Highness has charged us? Does this not resemble the self-justification of a coward, milord?”
    At the mention of “His Imperial Highness,” a ripple of tension ran through the bodies of four of the admirals, excluding Fahrenheit. Reinhard thought it all absurd.
    “So you say, Commander,” began Staden, attempting to plead with him. “But although Your Excellency may call this a ‘fine opportunity,’ you are the only one here who believes it to be so. Even from the standpoint of commonsense tactics, it is impossible to accept. For a strategy which has no proven track record—”
    This one’s not just incompetent, he’s an imbecile, Reinhard concluded. An unprecedented operation can’t have a track record. Its record will begin with the coming battle, will it not? Speaking aloud, he said, “Then tomorrow, milord, you will verify its record with your own eyes. Is that not acceptable?”
    “Are you certain of success?” asked Staden.
    “I am. But only if all of you follow my strategy faithfully.”
    “What kind of strategy?” Staden asked, making no attempt to hide his suspicion.
    Reinhard glanced at Kircheis for a moment and then began to explain the operation.
    Two minutes later, the interior of the soundproof field was filled with the sound of Staden’s shouts.
    “That sounds fine on paper, but there is no way it will actually work, Excellency. This kind of—”
    “Enough! There’s no need for further debate. His Imperial Majesty named me as commander for this operation. Your obedience to my commands must needs be interpreted as proof of your loyalty toward His Majesty. Is that not the duty of a soldier of the empire? Do not forget: I am your commanding officer.”
    A moment passed in silence.
    “All authority over your lives rests in my hands. If you wish of your own accord to defy the will of His Highness, very well. I will simply use the authority he has vested in me to relieve you of duty and to punish you severely as insubordinates. Are you prepared to go to those lengths?”
    Reinhard glared at the five men standing before him. They did not answer.
    II
    The five admirals departed. They neither accepted nor consented, but they did find it difficult to oppose the authority of the emperor. Only Fahrenheit’s expression could have been interpreted as favorable toward Reinhard’s plan for the coming operations, but the expressions of the other four were to varying degrees saying, “How dare that brat brandish the emperor’s authority!”
    For Kircheis, circumstances were forming in which it was a bit difficult to remain silent. Even without all this, Reinhard had a bad reputation as an overly young upstart. From the standpoint of these veteran commanders, Reinhard was nothing more than a weak little asteroid, giving off no light of his own, using the influence of his sister Annerose to borrow the power of the emperor.
    It was not as though this were Reinhard’s first campaign, though. In the five years since he had enlisted, he had already emerged victorious in a number of battles. But if someone were to tell that to the commanders, they would only say something like, “He was in a good unit” or “The enemy was too weak.”
    And because it was difficult to say that Reinhard was humble and courteous in all matters, their antipathy toward him had been amplified, and now in the shadows he was widely referred to as “that impudent golden brat.”
    “Are you sure about this?” the red-haired youth asked Reinhard, a look of anxiety rising up in his blue eyes.
    “Leave me alone,” his commanding officer said calmly. “What can they do? They’re cowards who can’t even make a nasty remark individually—they have to come in a group. They haven’t the courage to defy the emperor’s authority.”
    “But what